Graphic Design vs. UX Design: The Most Important Differences

If you’ve worked in graphic design for any length of time, you’ve probably heard about UX. UX, or User Experience, is one of the hottest tech fields around today and is an excellent route for creative people who hope to use their artistic inclinations in a high-tech world. Knowing the differences in graphic design vs. UX design will help you prepare and plan for your new career. When you know how UX designers operate, you can plan to develop the necessary skills and attitudes to blow the competition away.

You’re in luck, design folk. We created this guide to help you find out how being a UI designer differs from your basic graphic design duties. In our article, you’ll get introduced to the concept of placing yourself in the user’s shoes, and we also get you acquainted with how UX developers measure success in comparison to other graphic design professionals. UX is a rewarding and exciting field, so it’s worth your time to get the best info you can about a UX designer job. 

UX Designers Need to Think Like Users

As a graphic designer, you usually have nobody besides your own inspiration and market indicators to let you know how you should plan your images. You get to work within your own perspective and framework as you create, and although you consult with bosses and clients as you go along, the end product is your worldview and personality projected onto other people. UX design requires a different skillset. As a UX designer, you have to put yourself in the user’s shoes at all times to earn your salary.

You’ll still need to consider all of the same aspects as a graphic designer when you work in UX. Colors, spacing, layout, and typography are all as important as ever. However, you also have to take your user’s needs and situations into account as you work on your designs. Will most folks be using your app on a mobile screen? You need to make sure they can find and use the app’s functions while on the move and on small screens in bright sunlight, for starters. You have to keep the end user in mind at all times.

Success Is an Ongoing Process for UX Designers

Graphic design is all about communicating a message, right? When you work on an image for marketing, you create a design that best conveys the message the client wishes to project. You can measure your graphic design success by how effectively you deliver that message. UX designers have a different overall client, though, and their success stems from how that client responds to their work.

As a UX designer, you need to think of your product as one half of a larger conversation with the intended user. UX design is an organic and ongoing process, and your success will depend on how well your design works in that process. A well-designed app that fills the user’s needs and provides them with an effective means of achieving their goals is the best indicator of success in the UX design world. It’s a key difference between the two disciplines.

And that’s the deal, friendos. UX design is a hot field that will net you great pay and respect. You’ll need to understand the differences in graphic design vs. UX design to allow you to make an informed decision, though. Our guide helps you get the details you need and shows you what you need to know to get your career started right.